Lake Neuron

I often have the History Channel on TV in the mornings while I’m kicking around getting ready for work. This morning, they were doing a show which had to do with Revolution-era American history. They told the story of Thomas Jefferson writing the Declaration of Independence. He drew some of the material from other contemporary sources — which was looked on more favorably then than now — but put his own writing ability into play as well.

Then, of course, the document had to be vetted — first by Franklin and Adams, and then by the whole Continental Congress. The documentary showed several cases where Jefferson’s original wording was altered. It’s amusing to think of Jefferson’s frustration as a writer; did he feel the same way that we writers feel today about having our work revised by others?